Table Tennis: North Korea To Send Team To Korea Open

North Korean Table Tennis team

 

The North Korean Table Tennis team will cross the Korean Peninsula border to play at the Seamaster 2018 ITTF World Tour Platinum Korean Open in Daejeon, South Korea on 17-22 July. A historic event initiated by the ITTF Foundation.

The news comes after the North Korean and South Korean team formed a unified team for the semi-final at the Liebherr 2018 World Table Tennis Championships which was a sign of peace on the table tennis table.

ITTF President Thomas Weikert stated: “It is a proud moment for the ITTF to be able to support another sign of peace on the Korean Peninsula, by helping North Korea send a team to the Korean Open. After the momentous unified team at the 2018 World Table Tennis Championships which showed the world that countries can find peace on a table tennis table.”

The North Korean team is sending a delegation to South Korea, the move serving as the next chapter of a long history of table tennis diplomacy. Table tennis will once again act as a vehicle for peace. The newly formed ITTF Foundation is supporting the team to compete in the fourth ITTF World Tour Platinum event of 2018 as part of its Ping Pong Diplomacy program which is the first big program of the Foundation that promotes solidarity through table tennis.

Led by Rio 2016 bronze medalist Kim Song I, the North Koreans are fresh from their strong showing at the Pyongyang Open, held last month. Qualification for the Seamaster 2018 ITTF World Tour Platinum Korean Open starts on 17 July with the main draw starting on the 19th.